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AMDK so kum gong want to keep their outdated steel industry De woh
- Thread starter k1976
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Many people have tried to write off the UK steel industry. Investors would tell me “Too old, too expensive, too dirty”. But the government proved them wrong on Friday, making it a historic day for the UK steel industry.
Taking on responsibility for the steel sector this year, I was confronted with some stark facts. Port Talbot steelworks is the single biggest emitter of carbon in the UK. One of its two blast furnaces was nearing the end of its safe operational life, the other in its final years. The global steel market, mainly due to subsidised Chinese steel flooding the market, is currently “oversupplied” according to the World Trade Organisation. This means that much steel production in the UK is loss making. Our two largest steelworks each lose at least a million pounds a day according to recent estimates.
Occasionally there are calls to abandon the steel making for more profitable ventures in a free market. But two overwhelming reasons convinced us to act: sovereign capability and the cost of clean-up.
Taking on responsibility for the steel sector this year, I was confronted with some stark facts. Port Talbot steelworks is the single biggest emitter of carbon in the UK. One of its two blast furnaces was nearing the end of its safe operational life, the other in its final years. The global steel market, mainly due to subsidised Chinese steel flooding the market, is currently “oversupplied” according to the World Trade Organisation. This means that much steel production in the UK is loss making. Our two largest steelworks each lose at least a million pounds a day according to recent estimates.
Occasionally there are calls to abandon the steel making for more profitable ventures in a free market. But two overwhelming reasons convinced us to act: sovereign capability and the cost of clean-up.
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Closing down a blast furnace steelworks is not as simple as turning the lights off and selling the assets. The costs of remediation run into billions, meaning we’d be spending even more money and getting nothing in return. Far better to work with the private sector to sort the problem.
An even more compelling reason to think again is economic security, a core pillar of our strategy to deliver growth. There are certain industries which we need for resilience. Once lost, sovereign capability in these sectors is impossible to recover. Automotive is one, steel is another. Both are under pressure from decarbonisation requirements in our export markets and aggressive Chinese competition. Incidentally, Nus Ghani, our Minister for Economic Security, is currently sanctioned by China.
Without significant Government support, there was a risk of closing Port Talbot altogether. All 8,000 Tata employees could have lost their jobs and an additional 12,500 in the supply chain.
An even more compelling reason to think again is economic security, a core pillar of our strategy to deliver growth. There are certain industries which we need for resilience. Once lost, sovereign capability in these sectors is impossible to recover. Automotive is one, steel is another. Both are under pressure from decarbonisation requirements in our export markets and aggressive Chinese competition. Incidentally, Nus Ghani, our Minister for Economic Security, is currently sanctioned by China.
Without significant Government support, there was a risk of closing Port Talbot altogether. All 8,000 Tata employees could have lost their jobs and an additional 12,500 in the supply chain.
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